Rudolph claus



R. CLAUS.

BACK REST.

APPLICATION FIITED AUG.15|1919.

Patented Nov. 18, 1919.

fifi/672237? RUDOLPH CLAUS, OF OTTAWA, ILLINOIS.

BACK-REST.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 1s, 19219.

Applicationled August 15, 1919. Serial No. 317,645.

To all whom t may concern Be it kn'own that I, RUDOLPH CLAUS, a citizenof the UnitedStates, and a resident of Ottawa, in the county of La Salleand State 0f Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Back-Rests, of which the following is a full, clear, and eX- actspecification.

My invention is concerned with back rests for automobile seats, etc.,and is designed to produce a simple back rest of an attractiveappearance which can be placed in the seat when needed, as for instancewhere a short-legged person is driving a machine, so as to furnish aperfect support for his back and still leave him in the proper positionto manipulate the steering wheel and operate the various foot pedals.

To illustrate my invention, I annex hereto a sheet of drawings in whichthe same reference characters are used to designate identical parts inall the figures, of which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a back restembodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a central vertical section through the same; and Fig. 3 is ahorizontal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

In carrying out my invention, I makeup a three part covering consistingof the back part a, the front Z) and the bottom c. These pieces are madeof any desired fiexible material, preferably leather, or imitationleather, and the back part a has a straight bottom and a curved side andtop. The front part al is of the same general design, except that it isnarrower, and the bottom part c is crescent Shaped. In manufacturing thecushion, I sew the edges of the sides and top of both the pieces a and btogether on a machine, and I also sew the bottom of the front piece tothe bottom piece,'and all of the bottom of the back piece to the bottompiece except the part between the points Z and e, which is left open, sothat the parts, so far sewed together with the wrong side out, can beinverted and so that the stuffing and the stifening back piece can beinserted. The stilfening back piece 7 is of the same general shape asthe back cover part a, except that it is slightly smaller, and it ismade of some material capable of being flexed without breaking, such forinstance as rag board, which can be rolled up sufficiently so that itcan be inserted in the unsewed space between the points l and e,

and then allowed to unroll within the covering so as to occupy theposition shown in Figs. 2 and 3, whereit is held in the curved shapeshown by reason of the fact that the front part b is narrower than theback part a. After this stifening back piece f has been inserted, asuitable quantity of filling g, which I preferably form of a fine gradeof wood wool is inserted through the aperture left in the bottom, untilthe desired amount is employed, after which the open space ben tween thepoints `7) and e is sewed up by hand. The parts are then securedtogether and given the desired tufted form by passing the threads 7Lthrough the back piece a, the stiffening back board f, the stuing g andthe front piece b and securing them to the customary tufting buttons jin the customary manner.

The resulting cushion is a durable one, attractive in design, and whichfurnishes a perfect support for the back, as described.

While I have shown and described my invention as embodied in the formwhich I consider best adapted to carry out its purpose it will beunderstood it is capable of modications, and that I do not desire to belimited in the interpretation of the following claims, except as may benecessitated by the state of the prior art.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. As a new and useful article of manufacture, a back rest consisting ofa. stiffening vback piece composed of a stiff material capable of beingflexed without breaking, a flexible front piece narrower than the backpiece and coperating therewith to hold the latter curved in horizontalcross-section, a bottom piece connecting` the front piece and extendingbeyond the stiffening back piece, stuffing between said front and backpieces. and tufting members Dassed through the back piece, stuffing andfront piece to make a concave front on said rest.

2. As a new and useful article of manufacture, a back rest consisting ofa three piece flexible covering member, consisting of a back part andfront part sewed together at their sides and tops, and a bottom partsewed to the bottoms of the back and front parts, a stifi'ening backpiece composed of a stiff material capable of being flexed withoutbreaking resting against the back part, stuffing between thestifl'ening` back piece and the front part, ane tufting members passedthrough the back part, stiil'eningA of a back partlmving a curved topand sidesv `and L straight bottom, a flexible front covering of the sameshape' but narrower sewed l0 to the back atk its sides and tops, a,crescent shaped bottom piece seWed to the bottom of the back and frontcoverings, a stifening back piece composed of a stiff material capebleof being flexed Without breaking and of the saine shape andsubstantially the same size as' the back covering part, stuiiing betweenthe stil'ening back piece and front covering part, and tufting memberspassed through the back covering part, the stiffening' back piece,stuffing and front covering to make aconcaive front and a stiff convexback for said rest; In Witness whereof, I havehereunto 't my hand andaffixed my seal, this 5th day of August, A. D. 1919.

RUDOLPH CLAUS. [n s.]

